Bruce Banner (Earth-616)
__TOC__ Real Name: Robert Bruce Banner Nicknames: Jade Jaws, Jolly Green Giant Former Aliases: Annihilator, Captain Universe, Joe Fixit, Mechano, Professor, War, Maestro Other Current Aliases: No other known current aliases Status Occupation: Nuclear physicist Education: Ph.D. in Physics from CalTech Legal Status: Citizen of the United States under special pardon Identity: Publicly known; however the public does not know Joe Fixit was the Hulk Marital Status: Married Group Affiliation: Defenders, former leader of the new Hulkbusters, member of the Avengers, Pantheon, Titans Three, the Order, Hulkbusters of Counter-Earth-Franklin, alternate Fantastic Four Base of Operations: (Banner) Hulkbuster Base, New Mexico, (Hulk) mobile, but prefers New Mexico Origin Banner's molecular structure was transformed by the gamma radiation of a bomb when he raced out onto a testing site and saved the life of one Rick Jones. Place of Birth: Dayton, Ohio Known Relatives: Betty Ross Talbot Banner (wife), Brian Banner (father, deceased), Rebecca Banner (mother, deceased), Morris Walters (uncle), Elaine Banner Walters (aunt, deceased), Jennifer Walters (She-Hulk, cousin), Thaddeus E. Ross (father-in-law), Mrs. Drake (aunt, possibly deceased) First Appearance: INCREDIBLE HULK Vol. 1 #1 (1962) History Robert Bruce Banner is the son of Dr. Brian Banner, an atomic scientist, and his wife Rebecca. Although Rebecca deeply loved Bruce, who returned her affection, Brian hated the child. Possibly an alcoholic, Brian Banner was driven by an insane jealousy of Bruce for being an object of Rebecca's love. Further, Brian Banner believed that his radiation work had altered his DNA and given him a mutant son. Brian Banner finally murdered Rebecca and was placed in a mental hospital. Bruce, a highly withdrawn, intellectual youth, was raised by his aunt, Mrs. Drake, and internalized his great pain and rage over his childhood sufferings. Eventually, as an adult and a genius in nuclear physics, Banner went to work at a United States Defense Department nuclear research facility at Desert Base, New Mexico. There Banner met General Thaddeus E. "Thunderbolt" Ross, the Air Force officer in command of the base, and his daughter Betty. Banner and Betty Ross eventually fell in love with each other. Banner designed and oversaw construction of the "gamma bomb" or "G-bomb," a nuclear weapon that had a high gamma-radiation output. Banner was present in the instrumentation bunker at the test site for the first underground test detonation of the gamma bomb. Observing that a civilian had breached security and entered the restricted test area, Banner told his colleague Igor Starsky to delay the countdown while he tried to get the civilian to safety, Starsky, secretly a Soviet agent, did nothing, confident that Banner would die in the explosion, bringing the project to a halt. Reaching the civilian, a teenager named Rick Jones, Banner threw him into a protective trench. Before Banner could get himself to safety, the gamma bomb detonated, and intense waves of radiation reached the surface. Banner was irradiated with highly charged radioactive particles. Due to an unknown genetic factor in his body, Banner was not killed by the radiation, which instead caused him to transform frequently into the vastly powerful, green-skinned, humanoid monster named "the Hulk" by the military present at the test site. At first Banner changed into the Hulk at sunset and reverted to human form at dawn. However, Banner's body eventually changed so that his transformations into the Hulk were triggered by the release of adrenaline when he became intensely excited, no matter what time of day or night it was. Usually the Hulk possessed little of Banner's memory and intelligence and was easily enraged. Hence, the Hulk was a menace, continually hunted by military forces commanded by the implacable General Ross. For a short time Banner managed through radiation treatments to maintain enough of his own personality when he became the Hulk to control himself in that form, and he even became a founding member of the Avengers in this form. But once again the Hulk lost Banner's intelligence and became a brutish menace. For a surprisingly long time Banner managed to conceal the fact that he was the Hulk, but his secret inevitably became public knowledge. For years Banner wandered the world as a hunted fugitive, cursed by his recurring transformations into the bestial Hulk. One day Banner went to visit his beloved cousin Jennifer Walters, a Los Angeles-based lawyer. At that time Walters had been defending a hood named Lou Monkton, whom gangster Nicholas Trask had framed for murder. While Walters drove Banner to her home, one of Trask's henchmen shot her. To save his cousin's life, Banner improvised an emergency blood transfusion. The transfusion of Banner's mutated blood mutated Walters herself, causing her to become the She-Hulk. Finally, scientist Leonard "Doc" Samson captured the Hulk and succeeded through unknown means in separating Banner's psyche and atomic structure from the larger atomic structure of the Hulk. The Hulk's body, now with all personality and memory removed, was inert until Leonard Samson stimulated the brain within the body. This new Hulk escaped and became a greater menace than ever before. Banner became leader of a new government task force to capture the Hulk, called the new Hulkbusters. Banner also finally married Betty Ross, believing himself free of the curse of turning into the Hulk. During the honeymoon, Bruce became gravely ill and was hospitalized. Due to his separation from the body of the Hulk, Bruce's body began to lose molecular cohesion. The Hulk's body soon followed suit and he was defeated by the Avengers. Realizing there was only one way to save her husband, Betty pleaded with the Avengers not to kill the Hulk. With the aid of the synthezoid Vision, Bruce was re-merged with the Hulk. With Bruce's psyche once more in the body of the Hulk, the original Hulk persona assumed control of the body. However the reintegration was unstable and an attempt to stabilize and possibly cure Bruce resulted in the Hulk returning to his original grey color and Rick Jones being cursed to become a Hulk-like creature for a short time. When the Leader detonated a gamma bomb with the Hulk at ground zero, the Hulk was assumed to be dead. In reality, he had been transported to Jarella's world moments before the detonation. On Jarella's world, the Hulk helped a group of minor wizards to overthrow the "Grand Inquisitor" in return for a spell which was promised to rid him of Bruce Banner for good. When the Hulk returned to Earth, he was given a job as an enforcer for a casino owner named Michael Berengetti. Calling himself Mr. Fixit, the Hulk spent several months without reverting to human form. It was during this time that he met and dated Marlo Chandler, who would later marry Rick Jones. Banner eventually returned and the Hulk's life as Mr. Fixit soon came to an end. Shortly thereafter, the savage Hulk persona resurfaced and Bruce's psyche was in turmoil. Through hypnosis, Samson created the green intelligent "Professor" Hulk - believed at the time to be the integration of Banner's separate personalities, but since revealed as a new persona the psychiatrist crafted to help keep the monster's destructive powers in check. Due to the deteriorating effects of ALS and the chaos ravaging his mindscape, Banner cut a deal with the three dominant Hulk personalities - the green Hulk, the grey "Joe Fixit" Hulk and the "Professor" Hulk - essentially to time-share their existence, in return for stabilizing his fractured psyche and providing him with release from his disease. The Leader provided the means to cure Bruce. The original Defenders reluctantly re-formed when Yandroth surfaced again to menace the world. Though the heroes defeated his plan, Yandroth used his sorcery to levy a deathbed curse upon their heads, binding them to come together in times of crisis. Characteristics Height: (Banner) 5'9" (Green) 7' (Grey) 6'6" Weight: (Banner) 128 lbs (58 kg) (Green) 1040 lbs (473 kg) (Grey) 900 lbs (409 kg) Eyes: (Banner) brown (Green) green (Grey) grey Hair: (Banner) brown (Green) green (Grey) black Skin: (Green) green (Grey) grey Unusual Features: Incredibly large size and skin colour. Powers Strength Level: The Hulk possesses Superhuman Strength of the Class 100 level, enabling him to lift (press) in excess of 100 tons. The Hulk only attains this strength level when he is enraged. In a totally, calm state his functional strength is significantly less, perhaps in the 70 ton range. In human form Bruce Banner possesses the normal human strength of a man of his age, height, and build who engages in no regular exercise. Known Powers: ;Superhuman Strength: The Hulk possesses the capacity for nearly limitless physical strength. The gamma radiation that mutated the Hulk's body fortified his cellular structure and added, from some as yet unknown source, over 800 pounds of bone marrow and tissue to his body. During the Secret Wars mini-series, for example, he was seen effectively holding up a one hundred and fifty billion ton-mountain, which was dropped on them by the Molecule Man until the heroes buried inside could find a way to blast their way out. The Hulk also seems to be stronger the more radiation he absorbs, which is the main reason why Maestro from the future has become stronger than the present Hulk. He has also demonstrated his great strength by doing the supposedly impossible, he physically stopped the Juggernaut from moving forward. Also, The Hulk was the only superhero able to fight one on one with the psychic being Onslaught and hold his own after Jean Grey used her telepathic powers to effectively shut down his mind, resulting in the Hulk's rage increasing to the point where he was in a mindless, berserker-like state. The uppermost limit of the Hulk's vast strength remains unknown. *'Superhuman Strength Augmentation via Adrenaline Rushes:' In times of stress the Hulk's adrenaline level escalates, causing a corresponding escalation in strength. This is not accompanied by an additional gain in mass, but does appear to promote increased levels of energy efficiency. To date the Hulk has never apparently been provoked into demonstrating a maximum output of strength, hence his upper limit remains a mystery. *'Superhuman Durability:' In addition to great strength, the Hulk's body possesses a high degree of resistance to injury, pain, and disease. The Hulk's skin is capable of withstanding great heat without blistering, great cold without freezing, and great impacts (he can survived ground zero nuclear detonations). It is difficult to injure him. *'Accelerated Healing Factor:' The Hulk has probably the quickest healing factor than anyone in the Marvel Universe, including Wolverine. Wounds that would be deadly to most other heroes takes just a short time for the Hulk to recover. During a battle with Vector, he repelled all of the skin off of the Hulk leaving just exposed flesh and muscle. It took the Hulk minutes to regain the mass and be completely healed. During a battle with Speedfreek, he cut the Hulk's stomach open with adamantium blades. The Hulk had to hold his stomach to prevent his insides from spilling out. Within minutes the wound had healed, but unfortunately the skin had healed around part of the Hulk's fingers. He had to rip his fingers out of his stomach and allow it to heal again. It should be noted that during the transformation from Bruce Banner to one of the various incarnations of the Hulk and back, he gains and loses large amounts of mass. The source of this mass is unknown. The amount of mass transfered is dependent on the incarnation, such as the Grey Hulk has much less mass than most of the other incarnation. *'Immunity to All Diseases:' The Hulk is immune to all known Earth-based diseases, including AIDS. He can operate under intense conditions for extended periods of time due to his body not developing fatigue toxins quickly. *'Thunderclap:' The Hulk can slam his hands together to create a large thunderclap-type concussive force. He has imployed this for various reasons including creating a concussive blast to hurt enemies, to blow away gas or put out fires, or even deafen people. *'Superhuman Leaping Ability:' The Hulk uses his superhumanly strong leg muscles to leap great distances. The Hulk has been known to cover hundreds of miles in a single bound and once leaped almost into orbit around the Earth. *'Underwater Breathing:' The Hulk has been seen on the ocean floor a number of times and is able to breathe due to his body developing a gland which creates an oxygenated perfluorocarbon emulsion which fills his lungs and equalizes the pressure. He is therefore able to breathe fluid and avoid decompression and nitrogen narcosis. ;Transformation: Previously, this mutation was not a stable one. The Hulk would periodically revert to the human form of Bruce Banner, losing the extra mass and energy to the same as yet unknown source from which he derived it. The process by which Banner transformed into the Hulk had a chemical catalyst, adrenaline. As in normal humans, Banner's adrenal medulla secretes large amounts of adrenaline in times of fear, range, or stress, which hormonally stimulates the heartbeat rate, raises blood-sugar levels, and inhibits sensations of fatigue. Whereas this secretion simply heightens normal physical abilities in normal human beings, in Banner's case it triggers the complex chemical/extra-physical process that transformed him into the Hulk. The total transformation took from 25 seconds to as long as 5 minutes, depending on the initial adrenaline surge which is determined by the original external stimulus. Soon after the transformation, the amount of adrenaline in the Hulk would return to more normal levels. The Hulk has two extrasensory powers. Astral Form Perception: He can see astral forms regardless of form, including as Banner. This may be related to a fear that his father would return as a ghost to haunt him. Homing Ability: The Hulk also has a seemingly mystical homing ability that enables him to locate the area in New Mexico where he first became the Hulk. This extends even if he is in another dimension. Known Abilities: Dr. Bruce Banner is a genius in nuclear physics, possessing a mind so brilliant that it cannot be measured on any known intelligence test. When Banner is the Hulk, Banner's consciousness is buried within the Hulk's, and can influence the Hulk's behavior only to a very limited extent. Miscellaneous Equipment: No known equipment. Transportation: No known transportation. Weapons: No known weapons. Notes * Hulk was initially grey coloured but as the gamma radiation raged through his body, was eventually turned green. The Hulk has reverted back to his grey skin tone a couple of times. * Through the transformation from Banner to the Hulk, his jeans or pants are the only item of clothing to sustain the sheer forces in muscular explosion. Trivia * Lou Ferrigno starred in the television series of the same name as the titular character opposite Bill Bixby who portrayed the Bruce Banner persona. * In the television series, Banner's first name was changed to David on the concern that Bruce was considered too "effeminate". * Australian actor, Eric Bana, portrayed the Hulk in the 2003 film version directed by Ang Lee. Recommended Readings *Fantastic Four #12 - First fight with the Thing *Tales of Suspense #49 - Cameo Appearance as Doctor Bruce Banner. Seen working in his lab in New Mexico. *Amazing Spider-Man #14 - First Encounter with Spider-Man in a cave somewhere in New Mexico. Related Articles * See Also * Character Gallery: Hulk (Bruce Banner) External Links * Marvel Directory - Hulk References * Marvel Directory * Hulk: The Incredible Guide ---- Category:Characters Category:Living Characters Category:Good Characters Category:Secret Identity Category:Avengers members Category:Gamma Ray Exposure Category:Silver Age Category:Male Characters Category:Defenders members Category:Hulkbusters members Category:Pantheon members Category:Titans Three members Category:Secret Defenders members Category:Green Skin Category:Green Eyes Category:Green Hair Category:Brown Eyes Category:Brown Hair Category:Copy Edit